Retail industry

Wendy O. Williams

Article Abstract:

Singer Wendy Williams gained a scholarship to the Eastman School of Music as a teenager, but failed to complete the course. After drifting for some time, she settled in New York, where by 1978 she was performing in a live sex show. She linked with manager Rod Swenson to form the Plasmatics. This group was signed to Stiff Records, and Williams became notorious for her lewd antics on stage. She appeared in 'Reform School Girls' in 1984, and contributed four songs to the soundtrack of this film.

Frank Sinatra

Article Abstract:

Singer and actor Frank Sinatra dropped out of high school at the age of 16, and until 1935 performed at weddings, dances and other functions in New Jersey. He appeared on the radio show 'Major Bowes' Amateur Hour,' and then undertook a vaudeville tour. He was hired by Harry James in 1939, and was subsequently taken on by Tommy Dorsey. His career fluctuated in the 1940s and 1950s, but in the 1960s he was able to set up his own Reprise record label.

Sotiria Bellou

Article Abstract:

Singer Sotiria Bellou began her recording career in 1947, having been discovered singing in a small taverna behind Athens Polytechnic. She had a very unusual singing style, which some observers attributed to the Byzantine chant she had learned from her maternal grandfather. She played a key role in reviving the 'rebetika' style, and became particularly well-known during the era of cultural populism in the 1980s.